Florence City BZA Hears Request for Large In‑Home Childcare at 2101 Damon Drive

The Board of Zoning Appeals for Florence City heard an application to operate a large in‑home childcare facility at 2101 Damon Drive, where owner and applicant Faith Perry asked the board for permission to care for up to 12 children during after‑school hours.

City staff told the board that the Unified Development Ordinance allows small in‑home childcare (six or fewer children) by right but requires a special‑exception use permit from the BZA for a “large in‑home” childcare operation serving seven to 12 children. Miss Lane, city staff, summarized the ordinance’s conditions, saying the permit requires the operator to meet all licensing requirements and to show the use will not create undue traffic, parking, or noise impacts on neighboring properties.

“[A large in‑home childcare is] a residence occupied by the operator in which he or she regularly provides childcare for at least 7, but no more than 12 children unattended by a parent or legal guardian,” Miss Lane said, reading from the ordinance definition. She also said the city received “a number of phone calls and emails, expressing concerns about the traffic and noise issues potential.”

Faith Perry testified that she lives at 2101 Damon Drive and is seeking approval to run an after‑school program “between the hours of 3 to 7” for children ages 4 through 12, with a minimum/maximum of “12 a minimum a maximum 12 children.” Perry said her home has indoor space (garage area and a room above the garage) and an enclosed backyard play area; she also said her driveway can accommodate about six to eight vehicles if parked correctly. Perry said she currently holds a small in‑home childcare permit for up to six children and that she has an associate degree in early childhood education and is pursuing further degrees at North Greenville University.

Neighbor Fernando Pena, sworn to speak, said he lives a few doors away and opposed the application. “We’re opposed to it. We don’t want the additional traffic, the additional people from other neighborhoods coming to drop off their children,” Pena said, citing concerns about traffic on Damon Drive and past accidents near the neighborhood entrance.

Board members asked Perry and staff questions about current traffic and parking, whether additional staff would be hired, hours of operation, the proposed age range, and safety measures around a backyard pool. Perry said she would not hire nonresident staff, that she believed her home could accommodate up to 12 children without structural changes, and that fencing/separation exists around the pool and backyard play area.

The hearing record in the provided transcript ends after public comment; no final decision, motion, or vote on the special‑exception permit for 2101 Damon Drive is recorded in the excerpt. The board did approve the minutes from the prior meeting at the start of the session by voice vote, with the chair announcing, “Ayes have it.”

The transcript shows the matter was presented for a quasi‑judicial hearing, with testimony sworn, and includes staff’s summary of ordinance criteria (licensing, spacing, signage limits, and measures to avoid traffic/parking impacts). The record also shows the city posted public notice and mailed letters to adjacent neighbors; staff said all responses received were opposed.

No final action on VZA hearing 2025‑12 is documented in the portion of the meeting provided; any subsequent deliberation or vote that may occur later is not included in the supplied transcript.